Persona 4 Sapphire
by Detective's Heart
Summary: My version of Persona 4 starting from just before Naoto's capture and ending somewhere else... In this version an unforeseen twist makes Naoto seem like a different person! Her childhood friend has found out about Naoto staying in Inaba the place she already lives and gets entangled in the murder case! warning! random Japanese words in story and seriously badass fighting! SPOILERS!
1. Ch 1 The Prince and The Princess

"Mommy! ... Where are you?" A rather young Naoto cried in the rain. She was alone originally looking for an adventure in the forest near her house in the Southern part of the village. The village of Shiruba Mun was the place she had always been told never to enter Okami's forest as it held many dangers and cruel secrets. She had lost track of time once her watch had broke and as a result of this lost track of how long she'd been wondering the forest. For her age she was already surprisingly intelligent as she already had a small understanding of time... Yet didn't have the intelligence to listen to the rumours of the forest. She cried helplessly and fell to the ground. The fact that she was still too young to do much without getting too tired didn't gain anything from the harsh weather. She collapsed to the floor utterly exhausted shivering violently as another strong gust of wind buffeted her small body.

"Mommy... Where are you..." she mumbled as she slowly closed her eyes and was about to drift unconscious when suddenly...

_Woof!_

"Hmm..." A dog? She then noticed a grey figure getting closer and closer but before she could see what it was her consciousness finally faded...

* * *

><p>Silver ran towards the small buddle on the floor and recognised it immediately as Naoto Shirogane a 4 or 5 year old from her home village. She stopped as she now got close enough to gently nudge her with her muzzle. The child only groaned weakly. The white wolf like creature quickly nipped the child's jacket from the back of the neck and slowly dragged her into a small opening under an alder berry bush. It was the best shelter they both had at the moment so it would have to do! She curled up protectively around the child and gently liked her forehead in an attempt to warm her.<br>"_Ugh... this isn't working!_" thought the snow white wolf cub annoyed at herself. She sighed and pushed a lilac button on the orange leather collar she wore around her neck.

* * *

><p>"Ugh... hmm?" Little Naoto opened her eyes slowly. She felt much warmer the before and had to blink a few times before she could see anything clearly again. The heavy breathing of something soundly sleeping nearby scared her slightly before she realized where she was of course... and what was keeping her warm. A white wolf cub that appeared to have laid a wing over her to act as a blanket of some sorts, with an orange collar that held silver tags to it. The buckle to the collar was on the first hole which left much of the collar spare and jutting out of said collar.<p>

"Who... you?" she question still half asleep. The cub's fluffy fur making it to easy to almost fall asleep again. After a few moments without a response Naoto yawned sleepily and leaned over gently tug the cub's ear. The cub looked up after a few moments in which Naoto then repeated her question.

"I'm Silver!" she replied merrily making Naoto jump at the sudden change between being drowsy from sleep to wide awake in mere seconds. The Wolf's lilac gaze not helping the shock either.

"Um... I'm Naoto..."

* * *

><p>"Hi Naoto!" Silver squeaked merrily. "How old are you?"<p>

"Ummmm... I'm 4... And you?" In reality Silver could easily tell that all conversation would be limited to how exhausted the kid really was. She smiled in delight when she noticed that she was older then herself. Of course only doing this because she didn't really know any better and just wanted to make a new friend...

"Hey that's older than me!" she spoke as she looked out at the rain filled sky threw the narrow gap between the ground and the Alder berry bush.

"Hey Naoto? Do you remember where you live?" though she may only be a cub she probably new more words then the kid as cub's aged slower but learned quicker than humans did.

"I'm lost..." she replied tiredly whilst snuggling deeper into Silver's soft fur.

"Oh well when the rain goes ill take you to the village! We can find out where you live then." She looked again at the kid. She wore a light blue dress with small flowers sown at the straps, dark blue leggings and black school shoes. The kid's long dark blue hair rested over a deep blue jacket. To Silver she reminded her, a lot of blueberry... except more skinny... especially when the kid's ocean gave met her lilac eyes.

"What... are you..?" she questioned clearly forcing herself to pay attention. Silver calmly thought of a way to explain.  
>"Um... I'm an Arourus! A wolf with wings!" she answered hesitantly. "Why don't you go back to sleep? You look tired."<p>

"Where's ...mommy?" the kid looked up at her as her eyes started to close.

"Mommy? Oh... um... we'll go see her when the rain goes away. Don't you worry Naoto!" and with that she fell asleep followed shortly by Silver resting her head on her paws. The two breathed in perfect sync with each over as they slept peacefully under the shelter of an Alder berry bush.

* * *

><p>"Naoto..." a gentle voice suddenly interrupted her dreams of silly mysteries in a forest full of secrets.<p>

"Wakey Wakey!" The voice called again.

"Come on Naoto! Mommy will be missing you!"

"Nghhh..." she groaned and opened her tiredly opened her eyes to see the white wolf again.

"Hey sleepy head! The rains stopped! We can go home now!" Silver gazed excitedly at her a licked her fore head to completely wake her up.

"Mommy? Silver?" Naoto mumbled as she remembered what the wolf had said before she fell asleep.

"Yeah that's right!" the wolf smiled at her amusingly while Naoto returned a more excited grin. Silver nudged her threw the gap between the bush and the ground. Once outside she quickly followed. They both yawned in unison whilst Silver stretched her legs before motioning with her head to follow her. The two were practically the same height and almost the same age (well with Silver's age in months instead of years), walking in unison towards the village of Shiruba Mun.


	2. Ch 2 An Unexpected Meeting For Some

**_Many years later_**

**_Current day in Inaba_**

"Hey Silver! What's gotten you so happy?" called a girl with a slight chuckle. Silver's head turned to see Chie a student of Yasogami high school with light brown, bowl shaped hair and brown eyes. Her green jacket worn over the top of her uniform left only the skirt part of it visible. They never really spoke to each other much as Silver was hardly ever in the shopping district, but this time she had to be!

"Hey, Chie! My old friend's here to visit!" She squeaked in excitement as she bounded up to Chie and her friends: Yu Narukami, Yosuke Hanamura, Yukiko Amagi, Kanji Tatsumi and Rise Kujikawa.

"Cool! Who is it?" Chie smiled warmly at her.

"Another wolf?" questioned Yu curiously.

"Nope!" I replied, too excited to sound calm.

"Human?" Yu guessed again in slight disbelief before I can actually tell him. His silver eyes urged her for an answer.

"Yep!"

"Stop askin' questions an' just let her tell us!" I flinch slightly at Kanji's over dramatically loud voice.

"Her name is Naoto Shirogane! And she's the greatest friend EVER!" Silver's voice was unrecognisable due to her sheer amount of excitement. The group suddenly froze in disbelief when she mentioned her name.

"Wait what? Naoto? As in: the detective prince? Didn't see that coming..." Silver stared dumbfounded at the bleach haired punk.

"What's that supposed to mean? I've known her since we were kids!"

"Well that's great Silver. Maybe you should go meet up with him now." Yu seemed to notice that she didn't want to argue about her friend right now when he hastily gave her an excuse to leave. However Silver didn't realize this and hesitantly nodded in response.

"Okay then! C' you guys later!" she perked up immediately before trotting of again in search of her old friend.

"C'Ya Silver!" called Chie as se left. Silver's ear flicked in acknowledgment.  
><strong><em>"To the Samagawa flood plain!"<em>** thoughts whirled inside her head about what she'd look like now and how she'd react to seeing the fluffy wolf again.

* * *

><p>Naoto sighed exhaustedly as he arrived at Samagawa. He didn't have time for this! The young detective had arranged to meet with her old friend at this exact place... He hadn't the time to waste dilly-dallying here! The murder case here in Inaba he was supposed to be investigating was currently at a stand still as he had to wait for the culprit to take the bait... Silver may have been a great friend to him in the past but since she had lived her through the entire case then she might know something about it. The wolf was always interested in Naoto's field of work so she would undoubtedly be able to aid in the investigation. He looked at his watch before his gaze flickered to a white figure dashing towards him. A smile formed uncontrollably across his face as the figure got closer. Getting his thoughts into gear he quickly dodged the flying wolf as it launched itself at him.<p>

"Hello Silver." Naoto's calm voice seemed to just cause the wolf to jump at her again, this time managing to knock her over.

"Silver! Stop it!" Silver was licking his face in excitement. As dogs do. Pushing her away, he sat up and looked her in the eyes.

"Naoto, I'm so happy to see you again! It's been SOOOOO long!" her excited voice caused Naoto to smile calmly at her.

"It's nice to see you to Silver." Admitted Naoto, as he wiped her face with the sleeve of his jacket. "How have you been?" he would ask for her assistance after a short casual conversation.

"Oh I've been great! What about you? Have you had any exciting adventures as an ace detective er... prince?" a childish question. Ridiculous and absolutely meaningless.

"Not as of yet, but I am investigating the serial murder case in this area." He replied calmly but soon realized staying calm wouldn't calm Silver down at all. "Would you mind telling me what you know about it?" The wolf's excited, joyful gaze suddenly turned into one of more desperation and hope then before.

"Ummm... Sorry but I only know the details you will undoubtedly know already except..." She hesitated.

"Yes?" Naoto urged her calmly interested. She most likely would have been faking the hesitation to see his reaction but if she knew something...

"Well I did sense a slight change in the atmosphere and with a bunch of people. Don't think it's important though." Disappointment grew in the young detective's heart but he new it was still information. It might aid her in her discoveries.

"What kind of change?" She questioned in staged interest.

"Erm... Well ... that group of people seem to be er... Psychologically stronger so their atmosphere is different."

"Who are they?"

"Um well... Chie Satonaka, Yosuke Hanamura, Yu Narukami, that weird Teddie person, Kanji Tatsumi, erm... Rise Kujikawa and ... oh! Yukiko Amagi!"

"Hmmm... Well that's interesting..." Naoto's thoughts whirled into action to piece the information together.

"In what way?"

"Silver... How different is the atmosphere of the area?"

"Well... It seems more... well... foggier in a way... as if its concealing something and it also seems much more depressing then it used to be..." Naoto looked at her watch as she mulled over the new data. She staged a shocked gasp before saying:

"Is that the time already? Grandpa said I had to back 10 minutes ago!" Fake disbelief adorned her face. "I'm sorry Silver but it seems I really must get going!" Silver's ears drooped with disappointment as her entire expression radiated sadness. Once the case was over he would spend more time with the wolf but at the moment he had very little time to waste.

"Oh... Ok. Well good luck with the case... Um partner." He flinched slightly at that word.

"Thank you. I am very sorry about this. I hope all goes well for you to!" Naoto quickly rose and smiled in almost real sympathy.

"Thanks. There's no need to apologise for something that isn't your fault! Well..." Silver forced a smile. "C'Ya later Detective Princess!" the detective instantly threw a death glare at the wolf as she hastily corrected herself. "I... Um... I mean Prince... Sorry." As they parted ways longing suddenly welled in Naoto's mind along with regret.

**_"_****_Was this the right thing to do?"_**

* * *

><p>By the time Naoto had reached the Shirogane estate where he and his grandpa lived with the secretary Yakushiji it was getting quit late and he expected an important visitor soon. He had after all gone onto the news to set herself as bait for Inaba's serial killerkidnapper. The victims only ever appeared on television before getting kidnapped.

The midnight channel, a paranormal TV show that came on at the stroke of midnight whenever it was raining at that time, showed the next victims. Those victims would appear on the screen as blurry static silhouettes until they were actually captured. He had planned to at least gain more information on the case by setting his own life on the line and getting himself kidnapped. Illogical yes, but it would also prove that the case was still ongoing and had yet to be solved.

A high school boy named Mitsuo Kubo had brought himself into custody claiming to be the killer and the cause of the kidnappings. However there is little evidence to support that claim and plenty of evidence against it that led Naoto to believe he was not the one who killed the first two victims, only the last one.

Kinshiro Morooka. Morooka's body was the only one of the three to have an identifiable cause of death. The body was only found in the same position as the others - Hung upside down on a telephone pole. Mitsuo must have therefore, have only been a copy-cat killer to gain attention.

Naoto had come to the conclusion that Yu Narukami and his friends were in fact involved with the case as the group seemed to gain every kidnapped person as an ally. They must have somehow rescued them or something... He then discovered this to be more truthful as he remembered their school trip to Port-Island.

During the trip they had received a tour of Gekkoukan High school, and a stay at an old renovated _'love hotel'_ that was now just an awkwardly furnished hotel. The group had insisted he join them at one of the nightclubs in the area and somehow everyone else had gotten drunk on none alcoholic drinks... Imbeciles. They ended up telling them that - to use their own words –

'Every time someone was kidnapped we'd go inside the TV and rescue them! We'd go inside and use our personas on all the shadow people. PERSONA!'

Ludicrous yes but slightly helpful. It confirmed the suspicion that they _were_ involved with the case and _were_ the ones preventing the murders. He might be putting too much trust in them for them to actually come for him but, a detective must take risks! However once he pointed this out to the police department, they had been desperate to close the case beforehand, had done so with the arrest of Mitsuo, they had then taken Naoto of the case permanently. Therefore restricting his own progress in the case. He wasn't just going to cease his investigation just because he had been taken of the case! Especially since the majority of the people there where lazy imbeciles!

"Good afternoon Grampa." He impatiently turned and spoke to his grandfather, before hastily retreating to his room. He sighed as the detective prince slumped on the bed. Naoto stared up at the ceiling going over the information once again. Somehow those teenagers were involved with the case and could somehow prevent the kidnappings from becoming actual murders. The psychopathic kid who showed up willing to take the punishment for two murders he didn't commit. The kid's only motive was to literally gain attention to himself so that he, most likely wouldn't be alone anymore. Sighing again he looked at his watch.

12:57

"Almost time for the midnight channel... There must be something I've overlooked... Some key evidence I'm missing out on..." He sat up and looked at the rather old television, intently expecting himself to appear. He checked the weather without moving. Rain beating down on the window made Naoto sure that this was going to work.

The inky blackness of the screen suddenly turned into a static image with the fuzzy outline of a short person. The person was undoubtedly him as you could clearly see the curve of his hat and a hand on his hip with the other by his side. Yes. It was undoubtedly him. Naoto smirked slightly as the thought of the plan succeeding and finally getting more clues in the case crossed her mind.

The plan was simple, get media attention, get kidnapped, try and prevent the latter by capturing the culprit, if not then await Yu and his teenage group to arrive, find vital clues and escape on his own. He didn't need them to help him! The plan would give her plenty of clues to further the investigation, as well as prove its not over yet! Surprisingly the thought excited him more then anything! To know that the police department were wrong and be able to gloat if he wanted to about it. Just to have the ability to shove that prove in their face and be owed an apology from them made her smile in amusement.

It wasn't long before the image flickered away from the screen again to be replaced with the blank one he was used to. He yawned sleepily before preparing for bed.

* * *

><p><strong>Authors notes:<br>I am mainly changing this a large a majority of the story as I have never actually played the games as of yet. I have seen the anime and many scenes from Youtube regarding Naoto. I also know this character ridiculously well so I will stick to the original personality the best I can. Also SORRY if I repeated things unnecessarily. If I did I probably didn't notice! Anyway plz R&R I am quite new to this fanfiction stuff when it comes to writing about human things. I mainly only ever write about animals. :D**


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